Windshield wiper



Oct. .18, 1927.

W. B. GRAY WINDSHIELD WIPER Fired Feb. 2o. 192s @j Patented Oct. 18, 1927.

WILLIAM B. GRAY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

wrNDsHIELn vWirtin.

vApplication .filed February 20, 1926. Serial No. 89,556.

This invention relates to wind shield wipers, or wipers for windows in genera-l, moreparticularly to those which are power operated by electricity, or by other suitable power.

Generally stated, the object of the invention is to provide'a novel and improved construction whereby the wiper will have movev ment bodily sidewise, back and forth across the surface of the wind shield or other glass to be kept clear, and whereby this back and forth movement of the wiper will be accomplished without reversal of the motor or power transmission means, and will be entirely automatic, as will hereinafter more fully appear.

It is also an object to, provide certain details and features of construction and com `line 2-2 in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a detail vertical section on line 3-3 in Fig. 2, looking in the direction indii cated by the arrows.

Fig. 4 is a vertical transverse section on line 4-*4 in Fig. 3. y

Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view of one of the parts.

Fig. 6 is a detail side elevation showing two parts to be connected together, and illustrating one of the details of the invention.

'As thus illustrated, the automobile wind shield 1 is of glass or other transparent material, and may be mounted and supported in any suitable or desired manner. At the upper edve of the wind shield, supported in any suitable manner on the frame thereof, is an inverted channel-like sheet metal housing 2 having its slotted side facing downward. A. shaft 3 is-mounted in suitable bearings 4 and 5 within this housing, the shaft extending longitudinally of the housing immediately above the slot in the lower side of the housing. This shaft is provided with screw threads 6. extending in opposite directions, so that the shaft is screw-threaded in opposite directions as shown. The wiper 7 1s supported at its upper end by a cylindrical portion 8, the latter in turn is supported ln a. traveler 9 that is shaped to travel back and forth in said housing and in said .slotA 1n the under side of said housing. Avset screw 10 inserted through the lower portion of the traveler 9 holds the cylindrical portion S in place, and a separate engaging portion 11 is v.mounted in the traveler 9 and is free to turn about the vertical axis therein, the upper end of the element 11`being adapted to engage the screw threads 6 previously mentioned.

Therefore, vrotation of the shaft 3 will cause the traveler-9 to travel along longitudinally of the housing 2, but when the upper end of the element 11 reaches the en'd of the thread which causes it to move toward one end of the shaft, this engaging -portion will then enter the other or cross thread, the two threads being united or connected together at their ends at each end portionof the shaft, thus causing the traveler 9 to automatically travel back and forth on the shaft 3, but without reversing the rotation of said shaft. For the rotation of the shaft 3, any suitable or desired arrangement can be employed, but power is preferably employed for this purpose, such as an electric motor (not shown) of any suitable character and located in any suitable position.

As shown, a flexible power driven shaft 12 is connected to the clutch member 13, the latter being adapted to engage the clutch collar 14 on the reduced end portion of the shaft 3 as shownin Fig. 3 of the drawings. The clutch member 13 is slidable axially, to open and close the clutch, and for this purpose a. rock shaft 15 is preferably inserted through the wind shield 1, as shown in Fig. 4, and provided with a handle 16 for the operation thereof. The outer end of the rock shaft 15 is provided with an arm 17 to engage the clutch member 13, whereby the driver of the car may twist the knob 15 in either direction and thereby open or close the clutch;

Obviously, therefore, when it is desired to clean the front surface of the wind shield, the driver will simply turn the knob slightly in one direction to close the clutch, and thus causing the `motor to operate the wiper 7 back and forth across the outer surface of the wind shield. It will be seen"` that in this Wely the wiper 7 moves bodily sidewise back an forth, in a straightline, without any l to the part v8, by means of the set screw 17, as

shown in Fig. 2,01` in any suitable or 'desired manner. j

As shown in Fig. 6, "the end of thc shaft 3 has a reduced end portion 18 and a vsleeve 19 is placed thereon, this sleeve having the connected end portions of the two spiral grooves or threads of the shaft. In this way, and as a manufacturing proposition, the'double threaded shaft stock can be made in long lengths, and can then be cut to the proper length for any particular wind shield and the ends can then be provided with reduced portionsv 18 to receive sleeves .19, thereby completing theends of the shaft to provide the connecting portions of the spiral grooves or threads at o posite ends of the shaft. If this were not digne, then each shaft, for any particular width of wind shield, -would have to be made all in onepiece, with the spiral grooves or threads-cut entirely in the .one piece of shaft and this might be somewhat expensive. Therefore, by double threading long lengths of rod, and by then cutting up these long lengths into portions of the right length for different wind shields, by then finishing up the ends of these short lengths by applying the separately formed sleeves 19 theretoz less expensev may be involved, under some circumstances, in the manufacture of the invention. The housing 2 is set in posi'- tion, and the traveler9 is fitted therein as shown, so that. the engaging portion of the wiper 7 will'tightly and firmly Vengage the front surface of the wind shield, whereby 'the housing guides the wiper in its back and forth travel across the front of the .wind shield. As shown, the housing 2 is made separately and fastened to the front-of the win'd shield, at the upperI edge thereof, but it is obvious that the housing 2 or some equivalent thereof, may be incorporated or builtl directly into the structure of the wind shield, in the manufacture of wind shields -of this kind, should that become necessary or desirable.

As shown and described, the shaftfor en-` gagln and actuating the wiper carrier 1s rotata le 1n' one direction only, being provided With a right and left continuous spiral groove formed in the surface thereof, so that the continuous rotation of the shaft in one direction. is translated into back and forth or reciprocal motion by the wiper. It is obvious, however, that the wiper carrier maybe o erated b a shaft having a s iral groove o any sultable character, an rotated in 'any suitable manner, without departing from the spirit of the invention.,

' the wiper.

the invention, the wiper 7 and the traveler 9 and the shaft 3, together with the engag- 4ing portion 11,' form a wiper mechanism operatively su ported on the front of' the wind shield. n the other hand, the shaft -12' and the electric motor or other means for operatin it, together with the shaft 15 and the handle 16 and the parts 13, 14 and 17, form a power mechanism for operating` the wiper mechanism, and the knob 16 is a handle for starting the operation of.- the wiper. So far as the specific construction of the 'wiping mechanism is concerned, the power mechanism ma ,be-of any suitable form, but preferably t ere is a shaft of some kind, extending longitudinally of the motor vehicle, throu h the wind shield, with a knob or han e on the' inner endof the shaft, for use in starting the operation of In combination with the rotary screw 'member 3, and the traveling wiper thereon,

and with the guide whereby the wiper has bodily movement back and Iforth across the wind shield, and with suitable power mechanism lfor operating said mechanism, it will be seen that the handle 15 is preferably inside of the windv shield, and is connected by a short rotary shaft with the power means, whereby this handle serves as a controller for use in startingV the operation of the wiper.

Without disclaiming anything, and without prejudice to any novelty disclosed, what I claim as my invention is:

' 1. In a wind shield wiper, the combination of a guide extending transversely at the upper portion ofthe windshield, in front thereof; a controller handle inside the wind shield, adjacent one end portion of said guide, forA use in starting the o eration of the wiper a traveler on said i e, movable back an forth longitudinaly' thereof, a wiper carried by said traveler to engage the front surface' ofthe wind shield, thereby movable bodily back and forth' across the front surface of the wind shield, and instrumentalities controllable by said controller handle and including means engaging and operative to cause said traveler to move back back and forth alongA said guide, thereby to olperate the wiper, t ere being a controller s aft extendin through the shield structure to connect sai controller handle to said in strumentalities.

2. A structure as specified in claim 1, said instrumentalities comprising a clutch dislac the combination of a guide and housing ex `able bodil hack and forth across the front l tending transversel at the upper portion of surface o the wind shield, and power operthe wind shield, in ront thereof, a controller ated means overned by said controller hanhandle inside the wind shield, adjacent one 'die and inc uding means operative to cause end portionof said uide, for use in startsaid drive means to actuate said traveler to ing the operation o the wiper, a traveler move back and forth along said guide, thereslidably mounted in said guide, movablle by to operate the wiper, there being a conbaek and forth longitudinally thereof in troller shaft extending through the shield said guide, rotary drive means within the structure and connecting sald controller housing and guide for reciprocating said handle to said means. traveler, a Wiper parried b the vlower end Specification signed this 16th day of Feb., of said traveler to engage t e front surface 1926.

of the wind shield and being thereby mov- WILLIAM B. GRAY. 

